Direct Relief's Humanitarian Activity for the week of 11/08/2024 - 11/15/2024
Over the past 7 days, Direct Relief has delivered 530 shipments of requested medical aid to 44 U.S. states and territories and 13 countries worldwide. The shipments contained 7M defined daily doses of medication.
Medications and supplies shipped this week included prenatal vitamins, cancer treatment therapies, personal protective equipment, field medic packs for triage care, diabetes management medications, and more.
Medications and supplies for the treatment of cholera recently arrived in Juba, South Sudan, where a cholera outbreak presents a threat, particularly for children.
South Sudan, formed in 2011, is the world's newest country and faces multiple converging challenges, including ongoing domestic ethnic conflict, economic instability, and unprecedented flooding. These issues have been further exacerbated by the civil war in Sudan, which has led to an influx of over 684,000 Sudanese refugees flowing over the border into South Sudan.
A cholera outbreak was recently identified at a location where many people had fled from Sudan into South Sudan, and health authorities are working to contain the spread, which can be exacerbated in areas without access to clean water and sanitation services. Cholera can be particularly dangerous for children, who can become dehydrated rapidly from the disease.
Recently, a Direct Relief-donated cholera treatment kit was received in Juba by the International Organization for Migration South Sudan. The organization provides essential services such as shelter, healthcare, and sanitation in camps for people who have been displaced within the country. This includes camps in Bentiu, which host between 100,000 to 160,000 displaced people.
Direct Relief's shipment included a wide variety of essential medications for IOM's work in IDP camps throughout the country. With cholera cases on the rise in South Sudan and regionally, Direct Relief's shipment of a cholera treatment kit designed to treat up to 280 patients- as well as field medic packs for use by first responders in the IDP camps, arrives at a critical time for medical providers in South Sudan.
Direct Relief's partnership with IOM in South Sudan will facilitate medical aid for patients at border crossings, IDP camps, and IDP centers, supporting care in high-need humanitarian settings.
Tropical Storm Sara was drenching Honduras with heavy rains on Friday, and authorities were warning residents of possible landslides and flash flooding.
Direct Relief has been in communication with local organizations and health facilities in Honduras and across the region this week as they prepared for the tropical storm. The organization has also been coordinating with the Pan American Health Organization on regional needs.
On Friday, a dengue treatment kit, which contains items for the prevention of the spread of the mosquito-borne illness, was staged for shipment to Honduras.
The kit is bound for Ruth Paz Hospital in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, a facility that offers care for people unable to pay for services. Dengue has claimed more than 100 lives this year in Honduras, according to the country's ministry of health, and total cases were around 100,000 in August of this year. Flooding and standing water resulting from Tropical Storm Sara could create ideal conditions for more mosquito-borne diseases.
In response to increased cases of dengue fever across Latin America and the Caribbean, Direct Relief developed the dengue treatment kit, which contains mosquito repellant, repellant wipes, oral rehydration salts, acetaminophen for adults and for children, and thermometers. There is no cure for dengue fever, but the items in the kit aim for prevention of the disease and supportive care of a person experiencing the illness.
Earlier this year, Direct Relief shipped field medic packs, packed with items for triage care outside of clinic walls, as well as a hurricane preparedness pack to the Honduran Red Cross, located near Tegucigalpa, the country's capital city. The hurricane preparedness packs, which are shipped each year in advance of Atlantic storm season, are pre-positioned in hurricane-prone areas and stocked with medicines and supplies commonly requested after large storms. Medications include first aid items, chronic disease medication, water purification supplies, and more to keep health facilities operational after a disaster.
Midwives supporting healthy births in Nigeria recently received tools and supplies to help mothers and babies. Direct Relief-donated midwife kits, which contain items to support up to 50 facility-based births, recently arrived at the St. Charles Hospital and Maternity Wing in Adoka, Nigeria.
The country has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, according to the World Health Organization. The U-VOL Foundation received the kits and will be distributing them to midwives at the facility.
UNITED STATES
Direct Relief delivered 509 shipments containing 1.7M doses of medication during the past seven days to organizations, including the following:
Globally, Direct Relief shipped over 5.3M defined daily doses of medication totaling 54,570 lbs., to countries including the following: